indus chronicle

July 4, 2016

Editor’s Desk Sindh’s unity at risk? Inbox Thar Coal Politics Autocracy under guise of democracy An interview with Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani Changes in army matter a lot for Sindh Foreign policy Chinese President cancels visit to Pakistan Society Social unrest in Pakistan Balochistan The rise of proxies in Balochistan World Better together with UK Al Qaeda announces India wing Power deal in Kabul Leonardo, Emma turn UN ambassadors Sports ICC bans Saeed Ajmal Online security Avoiding privacy disaster In the spotlight 6 A soft coup in Pakistan Farooq Tariq 9 A political movement generated by psychotic powers Aryan Ahmed 23 Thar coal project-on the verge of realization Shamsuddin A. Shaikh 25 The state of barrages in Sindh Idris Rajput Managing editor : Chief Editor : Editor : Assistant Editor : Consulting Editor : Resident Editor : Senior Correspondent : Marketing : Manager Circulation : Graphics : Publisher : Printer : Manzoor Gichki Nasir Aijaz Manzoor Shaikh Kiran Shaikh Mehfooz Ursani & Dr. Ayoob Shaikh Ustad Khalid Chandio Bashir Baloch, Zulfiqar Rajpar & Azad Shar Jan Baloch, Bakhtawar Shaikh, Farooq Ahmed Rasheed Ahmed Qurban Solangi & Amjad Ali Thaheem Manzoor Ahmed Aysha Printers Write to us: Letters should include writers’ full name, address, contact numbers and should be addressed to, The Editor, Suit # 5, Plot 23C, 12 Com Street, DHA, Phase – II Ext. Karachi. Email: induschronicle@yahoo.com Telephone: 0092-21-35891799 16 18 28 4 5 10 11 12 Price Rs. 100/- 31 34 Monthly 13 27 32 29 Editor’s Desk The talk of the division of Sindh whether demands for a new province or the administrative control of certain areas has brought about yet again a bad taste in the province and it affects harmony prevails at public level in Karachi. The emergence of such a demand, always fed by authoritative regimes and their cronies in Pakistan has brought a set of theories of which a few are new ones. Rest of them are obsolete ones. One theory says this demand is bolstered by Imran-Qadri’s agitation as both have been advocating new administrative units in the country. The MQM gets encouragement from such demands and one of its reasons to support Qadri is based on latter’s demand for creating new administrative units in all four provinces of Pakistan. The number he demands for creating administrative units stands at over 30. The MQM believes Imran Khan also is supportive of the idea. The other theory claims the MQM does not want the division of Sindh but it is using such a demand to calm its huge internal crisis that has threatened to break up the party. The proponents of this theory argue the MQM’s return to the slogan of ‘Mojahir’ also shows party’s internal dissention which it wants to manage through reviving unity under the banner of mohajir. Whatever is the case, the demand of the division of Sindh has caused deep dissentions in Sindh. From the PPP that rules Sindh to the nationalists and down to the PTI has condemned it. None of the ethnic groupings in Sindh be they Pashtoons, Pujabis, Baloch, Serakis and others have ever talked in favour of Sindh’s fragmentation. The proponents of the unity of Sindh have very valid reasons to prove their point. One that the basis of the creation of this country rests on the provinces, which in their nature are the states. Sindh is a natural state occupied by British as a state and then its participation in Pakistan as a state. Pakistan’s 1940 resolution provides fundamental foundation to the unity of Sindh. Then Sindh has an assembly which has powers to decide if any need for altering the boundaries of the province exists. All that requires a huge majority and then come the national assembly to move ahead. The sanctity of the boundaries of the provinces is honoured by Pakistan’s 1973 constitution too. Yes, Sindh is living with pathetic governance. It must be improved for greater good of the people. Also, the powers should be dissolved at lower levels so that the issues at public level be addressed. The local government system must be strengthened so that the true representation of all people is ensured. It will reduce ethnic tensions and also improve governance in the province. Sindh’s unity at risk? 4 Inbox Extra questions about Thar Coal Having gone through the contents of your issue for July/August I heartily felicitate your dedicated team for bringing out such a worth-reading magazine in English, which is the need of the present era for creating awareness among all and sundry. The article about Thar coal in the aforementioned issue has highlighted the coal related project of Engro company, however it would have been in fitness of things and proved more informative, if the interview taker had made more efforts and had got answers from the CEO of the company to throw light on the following coal related issues: •When and where more than half of the likely to be displaced populace of Thar would be resettled? •Have any discussions/ gathering with such to be displaced residents of relevant villages been made or not on the alternatives for their resettlement, and whether or not they accepted such offer? •According to most of the world experts, exploration of coal through open pit mining modus operandi would prove disastrous for environment, if the said process would be carried on under clean technology. •Coal is hidden under sandy layers of the soil of Thar , and in open pit mining vast sandy areas would be bulldozed , that would not only cause environmental degradation besides rooting out thousands of valuable trees/ bushes , and destroying the natural fertility of the soil, hence what would be the shape and usage of such barren turned areas? •Huge quantity of underground water aquifers in the coal areas is likely to be dewatered for coal excavation, would the said process not diminish these aquifers, spoil its quality, besides causing alarming lowering of water table? •Would or not the continuous bulldozing of sand by heavy machinery give worth worrying rise to respiratory and other health complications? •For what reasons the companies are not getting published its resettlement policy and other material in Sindhi language, instead of English that is beyond comprehension of locals? •More than 95 per cent of the areas of traditional grazing pastures in Thar are already unlawfully occupied and cultivated by various vested interests , is it possible that thousands of cattle heads of those who would be displaced from their native villages, would get grazing facility in any other part of Thar? •Whether any kind of compensation would be paid to the relevant populace for the valuable trees, their homes, historical/ religious places? •The coal companies are bound to provide proportional jobs to local deserving candidates, however the administration of various companies have completely ignored them, on the contrary non-natives have been posted , even as cook, peon, naib qasid, driver, watchman, and other low grade posts, is it not an injustice with locals? •For what reason any befitting resettlement policy for the displaced population has not been made public, till now? – Prem Shivani, Mithi, Tharparkar Atif Aslam Sheikh was elected unopposed as Chairman of Pakistan Vanaspati Mills Association in 330th general body meeting of the association. The moot met Mr. Abdurrazak Sheikh in the chair elected new office bearers for the year 2014-15. Atif Ikram Sheikh, an Islamabad based leading industrialist is running business in Karachi and has been serving as senior vice chairman of PVMA. The association elected Mian Tasaddaq Rasool and Awais Karni as Senior Vice Chairman and Vice Chairman, respectively. Mr. Sheikh said that PVMA was one of the largest contributors to the government exchequer contributing around Rs. 30 billion annually in the form of customs duty, sales tax, GST and income tax etc. He stressed the government should focus on the industry to gain maximum revenue and resolve the outstanding issues. Atif Aslam Sheikh elected Chairman PVMA 5 6 A soft coup in Pakistan Politics Farooq Tariq Claims and counter claims by Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek Insaaf (PTI), Mullah Tahir Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) and the governing party of Pakistan, the Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN), of who contacted the army chief first for “mediation” or “facilitation” have puzzled the vast majority of people in Pakistan. Late-night August 30 meetings by Khan and Tahir Qadri with the army chief General Raheel Sharif have been severely criticized by members of parliament as showing the weakness of the PMLN government. The government then came up with the excuse that it was the wish of the two “protesting long marchers” to meet the army chief. Since August 20, a few thousand supporters of the PTI and the PAT have been occupying the main road leading to the parliament, Prime Minister House and the Supreme Court of Pakistan in Islamabad. Both right-wing parties were unable to mobilize a “million” people as promised to demand the immediate resignation of the prime minster on charges of rigging the May 2013 general election. Despite claims and counter claims, it is an established fact that the government has allowed the two protesting leaders to have direct contact with the military. They both are expecting and wanting a military coup after their occupation of the main road, which is being televised live 24 hours a day by all main commercial media. It showed the extremely weak nature of Nawaz government’s democratic credentials. In fact, a soft military coup may have taken place. The army has earned lost ground and is being presented by the media and the government as a savior of the “system”. Thirty-four out of 65 years of Pakistan’s independence has been under military rule, the last ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, left power in 2009 after a mass campaign against him by lawyers and most political parties. The military will be able to dictate all its terms to the PMLN government if it survives a hard military coup, a remote possibility that cannot be ruled out. The civilian government that has dared to show some independence from military domination for over year and half with its policies of peace talks with India and the trial of Musharraf may have to abandon these defiant policies. The occupation of the main road by the PTI and the PAT has fizzled out. It has not spread all over Pakistan. The deadline set by the two parties’ leaders for the final show down has been extended over a dozen times. Imran Khan’s appeal for mass civilian disobedience was opposed by the majority of traders and businesspeople. His party has submitted the resignation of some 30 parliamentarians. However, the provincial government of Khyber Pukhtoon Khawa, formed by Khan’s party, has not resigned a double standard that has not gone down well with the people of Pakistan. Khan launched his long march on August 14 to protest against the rigging of the general election last year. He is demanding that Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif resign to pave the way for a fresh election. The PTI’s Azadi March (liberation march) caught the imagination of many in Pakistan in its initial stage; however the expectation that 100,000 motorcyclists would lead the “million march” were not realized. It failed miserably. A few thousand marchers left Lahore, from the residence of Imran Khan at Zaman Park, riding in expensive cars. The Azadi March is being complemented by the Inqilab March (revolution march) called by the PAT. The PAT is a religious political grouping active in the fields of education and health and has a worldwide network of charities. The government allowed the “Revolution March”, led by religious scholar and chief of the PAT Mullah Tahir Qadri, only after an initial bid to repress it. Tahir Qadri, a Canadian citizen, has talked about changing the system and replacing it with a more progressive setup. The PMLN government’s strategy to arrest workers and cordon-off the provincial capital Lahore and the federal capital Islamabad with large containers worked well. The left-wing Awami Workers Party has characterised the two marches led by rich politicians and mullahs as reactionary and appealed to the working class not to participate. Both marches had reached Islamabad separately at the time of writing. The unity of the two actions was hit hard by the big egos of Khan and Tahir Qadri, who could not agree who would lead the rallies. In the meantime, PM Nawaz Sharif has been repeatedly asking: “Why the march and what is our fault?” He asked the question in his long-awaited nationally televised speech on August 12. Imran Khan says that the May 2013 general election was rigged and is demanding a new mid-term election under a government of technocrats. He later made a Uturn on the issue of a technocrat-led interim government after the president of the PTI, Javed Hashmi, objected and refused to be part of the long march. The issue of rigged elections came a “little” — 14 months — late. During that period, Imran Khan formed the provincial government in Khyber Pukhtoon Khawa province and the PTI is still in power there. Imran Khan was at ease with the federal government and started negotiations with the religious fundamentalist Tehreek-eTaliban Pakistan (TTP). As expected, the talks did not go very far and a military operation was launched by the federal government in June 2014. Initially, Khan raised questions about the operation; his main objection being that he was not consulted. Later, it turned out that the interior minister Chaudhry Nisar, from the ruling PMLN, had not been consulted either. Khan endorsed the military operation reluctantly and offered help from his Khyber Pukhtoon Khawa provincial government. Within a month of the launch of the military operation, Khan announced that he would march to Islamabad to finish the rule of a “corrupt royalist” government. Many commentators were puzzled about the real motives of the long march. It seems that Khan, who has always tried to please the religious fundamentalists, is again on the same path. A military operation could not be opposed publicly, so he started a campaign against the PMLN on the issue of election rigging. It is worth noting that during the 2013 general election campaign political parties like the Pakistan People’s Party, the Awami National Party and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement were attacked by suicide bombers. They were not allowed to canvass in public by the fanatics. Both the PMLN and the PTI were not attacked. The reason was simple: both were seen as sympathetic towards extreme religious groups. Now the conservative rightwing parties are at loggerheads on the issue of power sharing. Both are in power, Politics 7 8 Politics one in the center and other in Khyber Pukhtoon Khawa province. Imran Khan wants power at the center just 14 months after the general election. It seems an untimely decision as the PMLN has not lost all the popularity it enjoyed after the Pakistan People’s Party failed miserably during its 2008-13 term. The PAT and the PTI have presented the most serious challenge to the PMLN government in its one and half years in office. Both are using a revolutionary vocabulary to attract the masses. Azadi independence) and Inqilab (revolution) marches are an insult to the real meaning of the two slogans. Khan’s PTI is supported by and joined by the rich of Pakistan. It has become a rightwing conservative capitalist party. The PAT is a counterrevolutionary party using revolutionary slogans. It wants religion as the dominant political force to guide the state. These parties are gaining popularity because the Nawaz government has failed miserably to do anything to lift the poor. The PMLN is overseeing a fast implementation of a neoliberal agenda. To fulfill the conditions of the International Monetary Fund for a US$5 billion loan, the PMLN government has doubled electricity prices and increased the prices of gas and other services. A wholesale privatization of major public-sector institutions has been announced despite massive opposition by several political parties and trade unions. The issue of election rigging is just a cover for Imran Khan. His real motives include covert opposition to the military operation against Tehreek-e-Taliban, opposition to the PMLN’s attempt to put Musharraf on trial and to cover-up the performance of the PTI’s Khyber Pukhtoon Khawa provincial government. The real question is: what will happen after the dharna (sit-in) in Islamabad? The PMLN has made it clear that it will not give in. The Lahore High Court has declared these dharnas unconstitutional. Imran Khan says that he will not come back without securing resignation of the prime minister. Tall claims have been made by both Khan and Tahir Qadri. It seems both are expecting some sort of military intervention. There is no other way to remove this government. However, direct military intervention seems unlikely at present: support in Sindh and Balochistan. That is an important factor why the military might not move to take power. tion, at least in words, by all major political parties (except the PTI). Even the PTI leadership is paying lip service to the cause of democracy. lawyers’ movement and an activist judiciary that is totally against a military takeover and they are not going to validate a military coup as was the case in the past. ganizations and peasant and trade unions will oppose a military takeover. ernment is not unpopular to the extent that a military coup would be accepted. Imran Khan is in haste. His “rigging formula” is not being accepted by the majority of the people. His appeal is still confined mainly to Punjab. He has used very dogmatic language. He has made a bad case against the PMLN government. It might have been different if he had launched his campaign a year or so later. 9 A political movement generated by psychotic powers Politics Aryan Ahmed Pakistan, has in hand the most resilient political movement of its history, say the political analysts who are also at the consensus that Imran Khan and Maulana Tahir-ul-Qadri have talked about a deep desire—a society liveable for common citizens of Pakistan. It has, no doubt, created an urge for the change which is exceptional. Since Z.A Bhutto, Pakistan’s very first elected Prime Minister whose cult swept Pakistan (especially Punjab and Sindh), the current movement led by Khan and Qadri has done nothing but jolt Pakistan, no matter who supported it behind the scenes. The most significant question is: what has caused such an unmatched resilience? There are two factors that may have brought it to this point. One that Pakistan has undeniably turned into a country which has either failed as a state or is at the brink at least. Its economy is not improving, the writ of the state has eventually collapsed, the society has developed vested interests that encroach upon the very survival of the country, large parts of the country are ruled by militias and corruption prevails everywhere while justice remains a distant dream. Imran and Qadri talk about all that an ordinary Pakistani also desires. But such a struggle is nothing new for them and they have been stressing upon it for long now. Besides a deep desire for change especially in Punjab—a constituency shared by Sharifs, Imran and Qadri together- another factor which has produced resilience that made the sitin the longest ever in Pakistan’s history are disorders that exist in Imran Khan’s and Qadri’s behaviours. They don’t behave like normal persons, claims a practicing psychiatric. “My reading as an expert on human behaviour says Imran Khan is encountering behavioural disorders and Qadri the bipolar disorders”, he analyses, and also does not want to be named. Imran Khan’s aggressiveness and impulsiveness spells that he is not normal and that’s why he is being violent and also using abusive language, he said. It is because of such a reason that he has used derogatory language for almost everyone in the political arena against him. In this state, a person becomes prone to taking fatal steps and will go to any extreme. Imran Khan’s slogan ‘Azadi Ya Mot’ (freedom or death) which political analysts believe does not match the nature of his struggle—a parliamentary and bloodless one–also show internal psychological disturbance or suggested disorders he is encountered with. The reply is in affirmation by the experts on behaviour. This behaviour also creates an energy that is called mania. This might have provided a foundation to the resilience to the movement that we see in the capital. Imran’s psychological issues which has strengthened his movement marked the longest ever protest in Pakistan’s history is aided by another person encountered with yet another kind of disorder— bipolar disorder. The people with this disorder are prone to hallucination and also think great people stand for their support. Also, they feel very depressive at times and fall in sheer disappointment. Qadri’s act of digging graves at D Chowk indicated his depressive mode, yet another psychiatric claim. He is also known for his claims that great people in history have been visiting him at times. He is also reported to have told Asghar Khan about the visit of the prophet PBUH. Both Imran and Qadri being psychiatric patients have prescribed a recipe for a new Pakistan and they are, of course much talked about in the country. But somewhere back in shadows where their major support is coming from a kind of concern has begun to appear. The concern is: the same resilience can be counterproductive for keeping a current balance of power in Pakistan. If, for example, ImranQadri won the battle and go for genuine reforms which does not suit Pakistan’s power military establishment, then what will happen? This concern comes as a blessing for the PML – N government which with his supporters in the parliament feel better for now, claims a highly placed source. But the real task lies ahead. It is about how to persuade Imran and Qadri to go home. There can be two ways, some experts say. One that they may be persuaded craftily like a psychiatrist or can be forced to quit with use of unsurmountable force, possibly the use of state forces. (The writer is a journalist) induschronicle@yahoo.com Joint session of the parliament Autocracy Under Guise of Democracy 10 Ghulam Abbas Kassar As political crisis deepens in Pakistan with all political parties having representation in Parliament failure to bring in a compromise between government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and protesters led by Pakistan Tehreek Insaaf led by cricketer turned politician Imran Khan and spiritual leader Dr. Tahirul Qadri who heads Pakistan Awami Tehreek, both agitating along with thousands of their workers in restricted area of Red Zone in capital Islamabad since 14 August 2014 ( the independence day of Pakistan). Both are demanding resignation of prime minister alleging him of coming into power through May 2013 rigged elections. The bewildered prime minster rushed to call joint session of parliament which continues since more than a week during which all parties small or big were trying to save the most corruptible system in world prevalent in Pakistan under guise of democracy and parliament for which he has no or little regard as he did not attend Senate session even once in his 14 months rule before and only 3 times he attended the national assembly. Though all parties expressed confidence in Nawaz government yet considering it not enough premier also tried to involve army to save skin by holding as many as 3 one to one meetings with army chief general Raheel Sharif with the request which was later code named as to “facilitate compromise” with Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri who were both called to army GHQ and held lengthy meeting with the generals yet reiterated their stand for resignation of prime minister the demand still hanging like sword of Damocles over Nawaz Sharif head. Another and appalling aspect of the crisis of freedom march and revolution march as well a week long joint session of parliament is that none of the parliamentarians from Sindh and Balochistan raise the issue facing their people. During the week in question more than 70 persons were killed in Sindh by terrorists including Ali Akbar Kumaili son of renowned Shia scholar and former Senator Allama Abbas Kumaili and 3 Sindhi young men who were kidnapped from Matiari by security agencies and killed in Sakrand. Nor did any one invite the attention of parliament towards burning issues: prolonged load shedding, kidnapping of people on mass scale, murders, robberies, acute shortage of water and drought in Thar, Kachho, Nara and other arid areas from where hundreds of drought hit families are migrating. It is ironic that 4 times elected PPP MNA Nawab Yousuf Talpur did not raise the issue of the cold blooded murder of two Hindu brothers Hiralal and Ashok Malhi who were killed on 31 July 2014 in his constituency Umerkot . Violence against Hindus by religious extremists besides powerful feudals eyeing on their properties has forced them to migrate to India. None of more than 6 dozen parliamentarians (Senators and MNAs) raise the plight of people of Sindh. Dr. Tahirul Qadri the lone crusader with no seat in Parliament is waging a war against both federal and Punjab governments for the murder of 14 persons in Model town Lahore on June17 and has nearly shaken the PML-N government. Now that Punjab is inundated by floods almost all assembly members along with even the much Politics hated chief minister Shahbaz Sharif are in their constituencies to help their voters to reduce their miseries but our Sindhi parliamentarians have no idea of impeding heavy floods that are to cause havoc in Sindh in the coming days. Sindhi and Baloch parliamentarians seem more taken in political fever than their counter parts from Punjab and KPJ. Even the young chairman of PPP, Bilwal Zardari is expressing his grief for Wazirstan IDPs without slight sympathy for thousands of Sindhis who are migrating from Thar, Kachho and Naro as they cannot face onslaught of drought abandoned by PPP that has left Sindh at the mercy of this natural calamity. Sindhi parliaments have proved right to what people continue to call them as DUMB AND DEAF. Baloch parliamentarians Hasil Bizenjo and Achakzai have also proved non sympathetic to their people as they did not mention sufferings of their people including dumping of the bodies of Baloch youths who were picked up by agencies and thousands of others still missing. All Sindhi and Baloch parliamentarians seemed to have no concern on the plight of their people except to save the system eroded from inside but yet each one was trying to get a share of booty from the corrupt system which in fact is autocracy under the guise of so called democracy. – The writer is a senior journalist based in Hyderabad kassarabbas@gmail.com 11 The present crisis has weakened the PML –N government which is less likely to re-convalesce for quite some time now. Sharif government falling short of completing its tenure and thus an early election within one and a half years. Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani talks about various aspects of the current political crisis in his interview with Indus Chronicle Politics How floods situation affected the Imran-Qadri sit-in? A: Imran Khan talked so much about Tsunami that it came in shape of floods upcountry. There is widespread damage in Punjab and other areas and we pray it may not increase anymore. I guess both the sides have realized that it should come to an end now. Because the people are severely affected by floods and if they continue with their sitin, it does not send a good message for Imran and Qadri. Also, all the members of the parliament cannot go in their respective constituencies and are in Islamabad as the joint sitting deliberates to respond to the agitation. This is a situation which forces both the sides to realize the gravity of the situation. I believe if Imran and Qadri had voluntarily terminated their sit-in for helping the flood affecteess, they could have received unprecedented response and also won great honour for them. I guess they did not utilize the opportunity appropriately. Prime Ministers’ resignation and negotiations with government On one hand, Imran-Qadri teams are negotiating with the government but on the other they seem adamant that they will not quit until Nawaz Sharif tenders his resignation. If they work out a deal then what will Imran and Qadri tell their people? This is something I cannot respond. This question hounds me too. How will they satisfy the people? One should not be that rigid as politics is an art of flexibility. You sometimes go two steps ahead and sometimes have to take a step back in certain situations. If rigidity besieges politicians, it produces bad results. I believe they should not adopt a rigid position at the outset only. Also the PML – N government should not have followed that rigid path when Imran was demanding to open just four constituencies for audit. Now they are ready to open three constituencies. Both sides have demonstrated obstinate positions. So for Imran and Qadri it is very difficult to wrap up without getting a resignation from the Prime Minister. I don’t know how will they convince their supporters but it would not generate a positive message. It will look like surrender for both. Who loses more in the crisis? I guess both sides (ImranQadri and Sharifs) shall lose eventually. Imran will lose as we talked about it now and the government has greatly lost its vigour. The Prime Minister and the Chief Minister Punjab are now besieged by many controversies which has weakened the power base of the PML – N, that’s why I see early elections after one or one and a half years. Meanwhile, the PML – N will prevail like a weak government. Nawaz Sharif did not 12 benefit from the power that he earned as the PML – N head and from the parliament. Now he will rule on as a Prime Minister, albeit a weak one. Could the PML – N remain intact as a party? I believe it will as there is no challenge that the party’s is faced with in terms of leadership. Apart from the PML – N, PML – Q exists there. But I don’t think it’s a challenge for the PML – N. Now we have to see how the PML – N, PML – Q, the PPP and PTI perform in Punjab in the next elections. The PAT is like the PML – F in Sindh in terms of its following. But the PAT is not political in its nature. Could PPP benefit from the race between the PML – N and PTI in Punjab? Why not? The PPP has huge support in Punjab especially in Southern part of the province. Now it depends how the PPP leadership act in Punjab in the current situation and how they benefit from the situation. Absence of charismatic leadership in Punjab The PPP needs two things in Punjab. Firstly, the leadership has to give time in Punjab. Secondly, the party has to be reorganized. There is no any other recipe available for the PPP. The party has good leaders there like Qamar Zaman Kaira. If we encourage people like him we shall surely do better. Likewise, leaders like Zardari sahib and Bilawal have to give time there. Punjab is very challenging for the PPP. The PML – N has for long been against the PPP. The party’s local leadership think differently for the PML – N. There is a vacuum there as regards the leadership. I must admit it honestly. We need to work hard there. I believe we must form a strategy for PPP’s revival in Punjab. What Nawaz concedes to the military establishment? I think I must say it’s for the first time that the military stood by democracy. Previously, the military has been taking over in crises much lesser than the incumbent one. This time also, it could move ahead but they did not. It shows commitment and the level of maturity of the military establishment. It must be appreciated. Now who encouraged the protesting leaders and gave Politics gestures as if the military is in their support is something time will reveal in the future. All secrets will be revealed with the passage of time as to who was behind this entire crisis. If it was some local or foreign script or was it a production of these leaders. Unity in parliament I think it is also a part of that process. Also, one reason was that the parliament was under threat as Imran and Qadri hurled threats to take over the parliament, prime minister and presidency, etc. The threats forced all political forces to unite and save the system and of course themselves too. It was really great. All that is required to safeguard the system is they must stand together despite their political differences. The current reshuffle in the army promoting six major general as lieutenants and, of course, designation of new Director General of the ISI has a huge impact on Sindh, if not practically but, at least, it does in terms of perception. Of the changes, two belong to Sindh. One at the office of the corps commander Karachi which particularly sits in Sindh’s metropolis and, in context of Pakistan’s particular arrange of powers, has significant role. Lt-Gen Naveed Mukhtar will replace Karachi Corps Commander Lt-Gen Sajjad Ghani, according to the ISPR press release. Two, at the office of the DG, ISI also has critical role and this time the office is to be filled with the general who is one of the most experienced and informed generals on Karachi in particular and the province in general. Lt-Gen Rizwan Akhtar will assume charge on November 8, when incumbent DG LtGen DG Zaheerul Islam retires. The responsibility of the DG ISI encompasses a huge arena of activities helping to achieve Pakistan’s foreign policy objectives but if narrow it to Karachi, a number of things must be on General Rizwan’s finger tips. For example he knows very well where Karachi’s unrest is breeding from? What is the major source of lawlessness in the city? Who is involved in it, and, how the political parties act in the crisis? He must be knowing splendidly all about the areas known to be taken over by outfits like Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan and its associates. He has major points on his credits as the information and mechanisms of the disturbed in life in Karachi. On top of all that many analysts claim he is among the generals who do not surrender infront of political pressures. Karachi’s operation come to prove such a claim when he named political parties categoriaccly who according to him were involved in lawlessnaess in the city. But the major question which will remain to be answered is: how his appointment as the chief of Pakistan’s prime spying agency will help normalize Karachi? “The changes at the top level of powerful army have been announced amid reports that ISI DG Lt-Gen Zaheer and the retiring corps commanders were providing covert support to the forces trying to dethrone Nawaz Sharif for his efforts to assert civilian control over army, seeking vengeance over former General Musharraf’s issue and some other important matter”, a report said. However, the army has been strongly rejecting this impression. The incoming ISI DG Rizwan Akhtar, reports said was at number 63 with regards to the overall seniority and at number 34 among the major generals of the Pakistan Army. The appointment of ISI DG falls in the domain of prime minister who normally makes it in consultation with the army chief. Major General Rizwan Akhtar is said to be primarily the choice of Gen Raheel Sharif but PM Nawaz Sharif was also in complete harmony on it. Instead of sending a list of three candidates for the slot, as is the normal procedure, only Rizwan’s name was forwarded to the PM who duly approved it, sources said. General Rizwan is said to have a brilliant military career and he has a media and public friendly image which he had carved out during his assignment as Sindh Rangers DG, a position he was holding up till recently. The soft spoken Lt-Gen Rizwan is also known as an expert in working with the civil administration. Lt-Gen Rizwan Akhtar was commissioned in Frontier Force Regiment in September 1982. He is a graduate of Command and Staff College Quetta and also studied at NDU Islamabad and War Course USA. He has commanded an infantry brigade and a division in Fata and recently was serving as Sindh Rangers DG. Aryan Ahmed 13 Subscribe Contact information City State / Province Country Address Phone # Fax # Email Subscription information Per copy Rs. 100/= Save Rs. 200/= on annual subscription Annual subscription Rs. 1000/= Payment mode Payment may be made through pay order in favour of Indus Chronicle and cash through authorized correspondent For more queries contact Rasheed Ahmed +92-334-3667858, +92-21-35891799 Politics Name Company/ Organization 14 Confusion about Chinese President Mr. Xi Jinping’s visit to Pakistan has finally been put to an end. Official sources in Islamabad and Beijing have confirmed cancellation of the visit. Now Mr. Xi will not be coming to Islamabad rather proceeding to Delhi and Colombo. A tradition established since long has been discontinued throwing a question mark on the close relations between the two friendly countries. Visit’s cancellation, of course, is not by any other reason or differences with the visiting state as is done sometimes in high level visits but it became absolutely necessary in the present continuing security situations created in Islamabad by Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek headed by Imran Khan and Dr. Tahirul Qadri respectively over the past three weeks. It is very unfortunate that Pakistan’s most trusted friend and neighbour has decided not to visit Pakistan amongst that situation created for the first time in the history of Pakistan. It sent a shock wave in the political as well as business circles in Pakistan. It is believed that Chinese President was accompanied by a large delegation consisting of business tycoons who were willing to invest a huge amount of $.32 to 35 billion in various important life line projects in the economy of Pakistan; like Coal fired energy, construction of Motorway from Karachi to Lahore, Gwadar port, and many other energy generating projects. Such a huge investment is being offered to Pakistan when no any other country is willing to invest in the country owing to the continuing security concerns and instability in our wartorn country. Cancellation of trip will be a big blow to our much needed investment. Diplomatically, it will be a shame if Chinese President embarks on a tour of India on his maiden visit after his election last year ignoring Pakistan. It has been a tradition between Pakistan and China that who-so-ever comes to power in either of the country, their leaders, may it be President or Prime Minister starts his/her foreign tour to each other’s country before proceeding to any other state. Unfortunately, this tradition will be broken for the first time. Leaders from both the friendly countries always mention in their speeches that PakistanChina friendship is time Foreign Policy tested or higher than Himalayas and deeper than Oceans or our two countries are like two souls in one body, will be negatively commented by some writers or thinkers. President Xi’s visit to Pakistan was taking place at a time when important political changes were taking place in the region. There is the new Prime Minister headed by BJP in India who is an important neighbour of both China and Pakistan, leaving American troops from Afghanistan and new political developments emerging there after a long war in the country and Pakistan is also going through a new political transformation thinking to develop friendly ties with India and Afghanistan. Cancellation of Chinese President’s visit to Pakistan will be a big blow to the Chinese President cancels visit to Pakistan Faiz Mohammed Khoso stan and poor governance of the government. Of course, it was our internal situation that compelled our valued guests to rethink visiting Pakistan otherwise we usually put blame on foreign countries for such developments. I hope leaders of PTI and PAT will think of Pakistan and welfare of the people and end their dharnas (sitins), sooner the better to pave way for the visits of leaders of our friendly countries to Pakistan. I would also urge the government to make every effort by sending our Foreign Minister to China to reschedule the visit of Mr. Xi sooner than later to show solidarity with Pakistan and a strong signal should go to the world that China is standing shoulder to shoulder with Pakistan in all times to come. (The writer is Pakistan’s former ambassador to China. China-India sign 12 agreement worth $ 20 billion China and India, the two largest economies of Asia, have signed a whole range of memorandums and agreements during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit of India. They range from civil nuclear deals to development of India’s railway network and infrastructure, setting up industrial parks in Gujarat and Maharashtra, strengthening mutual trade, etc. The Chinese President and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed a total of 12 agreements in New Delhi They also announced an investment of $ 20 billion in the next five years. Chinese officials later said the tune would touch $ 100 billion in longer run. Aiming to overcome its chronic energy crisis, India has signed a series of civil nuclear deals with countries like the US, Australia and Japan. Now, it signed agreements with China. Though, India and China were tense as regards their tensions on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh recently, the two neighbouring countries opted for mutual dialogue and did not interrupt trade deals. On the other side, Pakistan, entangled with its issues at home faced an embarrassment with cancellation of the visit of Chinese leader who was about to announce investments worth $ 34 billion in Pakistan. ICMD 15 present government and to our foreign policy. It will leave a negative impact on Pakistan in the global world that the most trusted friend of Pakistan has cancelled his official visit hence others will do so. Before that another two such visits were cancelled in the recent past – one was the Mauritius Prime Minister who was scheduled to visit Islamabad followed by the Sri Lankan President. These high level visits are scheduled much earlier confirming the convenience of VVIPs of both the states. Cancellation or postponement or for that matter rescheduling of Mr. Xi’s visit means delay in signing of those contracts and commencement of projects, which will be big loss to economy of the country. Recently former President Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, cochairman of Pakistan People’s Party who is a frequent visitor of China continuing the policy of Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto further cementing friendly and close ties between the two states toured China as well as Mr. Shahbaz Sharif, Chief Minister of Punjab also visited China and both the leaders met Chinese leaders and discussed with them many important issues. They might have raised various regional, international and bilateral issues confronting Pakistan and China in the fast developing world and the investment opportunities available in the country. Cancellation of President of China’s visit would watershed the aims and objectives of those visits. Any lay man can easily visualize as to how much negative impact or damage cancellation of these visits particularly of China will leave on the image of PakiForeign policy 16 Some areas of Pakistan are considered very sensitive being the conflict zones where the militants operate and bomb explosions had become order of the day but virtually the entire country has turned into conflict zone confronted with widespread violence and social unrest that has shaken the very foundation of society. The very recent one are the processions and sit-ins – Azadi an Inqilab marches, as named and led by Imran Khan of Tehreek-e-Inseam Pakistan and Dr. Tahir-ulQadri of Pakistan Awami Tehreek that rocked the PML-N governments at Center and in Punjab as well as the state institutions like parliament, judiciary and armed forces. It’s speculated that some ‘invisible forces’ were behind this prolonged agitation. Whoever may be behind it, but one can certainly say that social unrest caused by host of public problems boiling beneath the surface was instrumental to it. The gravity of social unrest could be gauged by the daily reports of print and electronic media as well as statistics compiled by various government and nongovernment organizations according to which hundreds of demonstrations, rallies and sit-ins are staged and hunger strikes are observed daily besides frequent transport and business strikes called by different political, religious and nationalist organizations across the country over the years and such protests are increasing with every passing day instead of registering any decline. Moreover, tribal feuds too often take place in those parts of country, which are under the influence of feudal system. However, it has been observed that violation of human rights is the root cause of social unrest and violence. Sometimes the demonstrators become violent and block the roads, set vehicles, gas stations, cinemas and shops ablaze, move towards Parliament, Provincial assemblies, Prime Minister’s House, Governor and Chief Minister’s House and other government offices to besiege them. In view of such incidents the areas surrounding those places have been declared Red Zone and strict security is being maintained. The heavy contingents of police and rangers equipped with water canons, guns with rubber bullets and tear gas shells are almost permanently deployed in the area and whenever any demonstration is held the protestors are baton charged and dispersed using the weapons mentioned above. This all is done without giving any patient hearing to the protesters. According to a survey, based on print and elecSociety tronic media reports, on an average 300 agitation activities take place every day in different cities and towns by the people of different walks of life including government employees, factory workers, health workers, students, teachers, peasants, political workers etc. demanding resolution of their problems. This way, 9000 such demonstrations, rallies and hunger strikes take place in a month and not a single day of the year passes without these protests. The problems, the people are agitating for resolution, are unemployment, retrenchment of already employed people, regularization of services of those working on contract since years, non-payment of salaSocial Unrest in Pakistan Over 9000 agitation activities taking place every month Nasir Aijaz 17 powers, there had been discontentment from the day one. There had been no consistency in the policies of rulers because of lack of political will and many other reasons. The deterioration in every sector grew faster with each passing day, month and the year and today when the country is governed by a so-called democratic government, there is no sign of any let up in miseries of people making them to take to street. Since the media, print as well as electronic, is very much vibrant in Pakistan, it is a great source of solace for the agitating people, who in order to ventilate their anger take out rallies and stage demonstrations or observe hunger strikes outside the press clubs, which exist almost in every city and town of country. The media persons use to be present at the press clubs all the time and report the agitations swiftly to their respective media houses. In bigger cities, especially in provincial capitals and the federal capital, the protesters gather at the press clubs and start marching towards Governors’ and Chief Ministers’ houses, and the provincial assembly buildings in provinces and towards Presidency, Prime Minister’s House and Parliament building in federal capital, which have been declared Red Zones by the government for want of security. All the political parties have also miserably failed to resolve the public issues. Being in power and partners in plunder for several years, they all had been pulling each other’s legs. Such a situation led to political crisis. The crisis further deteriorated due to ruling party’s (PML-N) differences with the military. Amidst such social and political crisis, Imran Khan, a former Captain of Pakistan cricket team, who heads Tehreek-e-Insaaf, rallied all over country to mobilize mass support for tumbling down present setup, but couldn’t succeed so far. Although, the masses are fed up of corruption and wrong doings of past and present rulers, and are agitating for a change in real sense, to get rid of corruption and resolve problems of poverty, hunger, unemployment, inflation etc. but they have no dynamic and sincere leadership that could steer the country and nation out of these crisis. The social scientists were of the opinion that Pakistan is facing a governance crisis. According to them a clear vision, efficient policies and better management at government level can address the entire crisis faced by the country. ries to the contractual workers and even nonpayment of salaries to permanent employees of government, water shortage for drinking and irrigation purpose in cities, towns and villages, prolonged suspension of electricity supply, suspension of gas supply, price hike of essential commodities, frequent increase in petroleum and gas tariff, increase in public transport fares, law & order situation, robberies, snatching/stealing bikes, cars, cash and cell phones, kidnapping of industrialists/ traders for ransom, child abduction, extortion of money from traders, target killings, sectarian killings and many other such problems. Even the official data of crime released by the government every year paint a very horrible picture. Besides this, political rallies by different parties and organizations against the America and its allies have also become order of the day to show anger over drone attacks by NATO forces and the US intervention in the internal affairs of Pakistan. The political and religious parties have been blaming the government of toeing the policies of IMF, WB and USA under their pressure thus making the life miserable of poor Pakistanis. This unrest is not the recent development, as its roots could be traced back since inception of Pakistan in 1947. The intelligentsia of the country believes that since the successive governments, either civilian or the military one, didn’t frame internal as well as external policies on their own keeping in view the interests of country and wellbeing of citizens, and instead followed the dictations given by foreign Society 18 It passed like an insignificant event when some women were attacked with acid in Balochistan’s Dalbadin area a few years back. Scantly few knew it was the beginning of a new trend in a society living with full blown insurgency intensified after assassination of Bugtis’ tribal chief Nawab Akbar Khan who now remains an icon of freedom in the province. While the events of acid throwing swelled in Balochistan, an organization namely Islamia Al Furqan distributed in Panjgore, Makran pamphlets prohibiting coeducation in English learning centres. Soon after that a van of the principal of one of the centres was attacked. It was an eye opener which not only drew a huge reaction in the province but also made every one realize the sensitivity of the issue. The intensity of situation was bolstered by acid throwing cases yet again this time in Quetta and Mastung exposing a threat that now seems to be deep rooted in Balochistan tormented by attacks on Shiite Hazars for long now. All such incidents are believed to be connected with an increasing trend of religious fundamentalism which has now taken new proportions in Balochistan. Recently, a religious organization issued a decree for Zikri sect that they must say prayers according to their (decree issuers) beliefs. It provoked a separatist organization attacking the members of that religious organization. In August, eight people from Zikri community were killed while they were busy in their prayers in Qasim Jo area, Awaran. Eye witnesses said two armed people attacked worshippers. A few days later, three people from Zikri community were reportedly kidnapped in Pedarak of district Ketch. Same day, a school was set on fire in the same area. A pamphlet recovered from the scene named an organization Al Jehad seeking prohibition of girls’ education in the area. Political activists and Baloch nationalists see it as a ploy against Balochistan’s nationalist movement. They connect Khuzdar’s religious outfit with the Tootak incident. The provincial government sees it differently. Its spokesman claimed it was a struggle of armed groups for maintaining their hold on the areas and also on illegal business there. It is no secret however that the government does not enjoy writ in these areas at all. Amidst all what has happened in and around Dasht, a man namely Mullah Umar has emerged. Who is he and where he is from is something not crystal clear. Also his affiliations are not clearly defined as yet. On November 25, 2013, a compound in Kalaho village of Turbat district was targeted with rockets which killed a girl and injured many people besides destroying two houses. Locals said the rockets were fired from Iranian side of the border. However, local officials claimed they were fired from Ketch side. It is said the target was Mullah Umar who was Balochistan residing there for long. Anyways, he escaped the attack. Some people say this clean shaved person around 40 belongs to Iranian Balochistan and is leader of an organization namely Jaishul-Adl. How this organization is involved in attacks in Balochistan is a big question. Some analysts suggest the increasing activities of such kind of outfits are aimed at sending a message that Balochistan is not only home of nationalistic insurgency but also is an abode of religious organizations. In recent times, wall chalking in many areas is attempted to show that they (religious outfits) are linked with Tehrik-e-Taliban. One organization, Lashkar-eKhurasani has also shown its support for Syrian ISIS through wall chalking. The rise of such organizations has raised serious concerns and has also frequented a query as to who is behind such a phenomenon, new in Balochistan. A cross-section of people however believes it’s an open message for Baloch leadership which cannot avoid the situation under the pretext that it is all between militant organizations. Many nationalists are sure that such organizations have been fielded to counter Baloch separatist organizations and this strategy is bound to affect Baloch society immensely. The rise of proxies in Balochistan Bashir Baloch taken up by the private sector. The company has achieved substantial progress on both projects. All technical and environmental studies have been conducted and NOC from environmental authorities (SEPA) have been received. China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) has been selected as EPC engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor. As a worldrenowned engineering contractor, CMEC is ranked among China’s top 10 contractors by the business turnover and has business reach in more than 150 countries and regions. CMEC’s has already been involved in various projects in Pakistan as EPC contractor including Saif Power (225MW), Muzaffargarh Thermal Power Plant (320MW) and Guddu Thermal Plant (210MW – involved in design, supply, and installation and commissioning). The EPC contract on turnkey basis has been signed for both projects. Six thousand acres of land has been acquired for which no resettlement is required. Work for the 113m cubic metre overburden removal in Thar Block II was started with a local contractor on April 30. Use of a local contractor will help expedite the work before the Chinese EPC contractors are mobilized, saving 3-4 months in construction time. The groundbreaking of the project was jointly performed by Prime Minister Main Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and former President Asif Zardari on 31st January 2014. The presence of both gentlemen greatly enhanced the project’s profile. The project has been Physical work on-going since May 2014. With EPC Contractor finalized, project moving swiftly towards Financial Close. At optimum mine capacity of 4,000MW, Thar coal can yield a power tariff of approximately Rs. 6 per unit – this is the cheapest among the options currently available. Thar Coal reserves hold the key to Pakistan’s Energy Security with 175Bn of indigenous coal reserves buried under the desert. Pakistan is fortunate to have abundant coal reserves that are equivalent to the combined oil reserves of Iran and Saudi Arabia in energy equivalent terms, and have the capacity to produce 100,000 MW of electricity for 200 years. The Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC), a joint venture between the Sindh government and Engro Corporation, has been working on the project for the past 5 years. Engro, as manager of the project, has been working on the technical and commercial aspects, whereas the Sindh government is developing the requisite infrastructure for the project. As the developer of Thar Block II, SECMC plans to expand the mine in phases and reach a sustainable capacity of coal output for the production of 4,000MW in 10 years, which will remain available for the next 50 years. In the first phase of the project, mine of 3.8 million tonnes per annum capacity will be developed and the coal will be utilised by a mine-mouth power plant of 660MW. The total investment for the integrated project is estimated to be US$1.9Bn making it Pakistan’s biggest project in terms of investment being Thar Coal Project–On the verge of realization Shamsuddin A. Shaikh 23 Thar Coal and bypasses of small cities. To further reduce travel time, an airport is being constructed in Islamkot, whose airstrip has been completed and the construction of terminal building has to be initiated. It is expected to be completed by end- 2015. Moreover, for the bankability of projects and timely execution and reliable operations of critical infrastructure, the provincial government is drafting an implementation agreement, with adequate coverage in case of non-performance, which will be signed with the SECMC. Other infrastructure requirement such as the transmission line, which is the responsibility of the NTDC, has also been assured. The Federal and Sindh Government are also facilitating the SECMC in achieving financial close. With their support, the Thar coal projects of SECMC have been listed among ‘Prioritized Projects’ under the ChinaPak Economic Corridor based on readiness. The Chinese government has already approved 14 power projects that have the ability generate 10,400 megawatts (MW) of electricity. China and Pakistan have agreed to give due priority to the development and utilization of indigenous resource in Pakistan and is not only willing to provide the technical expertise for exploiting these resources but also help in financing these projects. Furthermore, discussions are ongoing with Chinese and local banks for the finalization of term sheets. SECMC is confident of achieving financial close within this year, with the availability of sovereign guarantee for mining and an acceptable security package (IA, PPA, tariff) for the power plant in place. The integrated project is expected to come online by December 2017, if financial close is achieved within this year. Equity requirements of the project are also firmed up for both projects. Thar dream is on the verge of realization, and this has been made possible through the federal and provincial governments’ unwavering commitment towards the development of Thar. Thar, undoubtedly, is the most viable power generation option for Pakistan. Development of this indigenous reserve will not only address the severe power shortage crisis in medium to long term, but also bring the much required energy security to the country. The writer is CEO Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company These are being executed as per the project requirements. Sindh Government, through the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (SIDA), is developing freshwater supply from Nabisar, which will support 1,200MW of power generation. Work is ongoing at a fast pace, and 50pc work of Phase I has already been completed, with the installation of a reverse osmosis plant at Nabisar. Meanwhile, the tendering process for Phase II is also complete. The scheme is expected to be completed by end-2016, much before the requirement of the power plant in December 2017. There are some concerns on the effluent disposal line, which was expected to be finalised by June and the contract has still not been awarded. The Sindh Government has, however, assured SECMC of its timely availability, and as per the project schedule, the line is now required by July 2015. SECMC has been made responsible for supervising the technical specifications for both these critical infrastructure projects. Despite several challenges relating to land acquisition in populated areas, the widening and rehabilitation of the road network is also proceeding at a fast pace, with expansion work being done on bridges, culverts declared as one of national importance by the honorable prime minister and assured full support of the government. The development of regulatory and pricing regime for Thar coal by Thar Coal & Energy Board is also underway, and the reference coal tariff for Thar coal is expected to be announced as early as end of this month. For power plant, NEPRA has already announced acceptable tariff for Thar coal-based power generation. LOI application has already been submitted to PPIB and notice to proceed is expected within next week. Moreover, the drafts of key project agreements (security package i.e. PPA, IA and CSA) have been prepared and discussions with relevant authorities/companies are underway. Security package is expected to be finalized within 02-03 months. The Government of Sindh, on the other hand, as the joint venture partner and developer of Thar, has been diligently working on the necessary infrastructure development. Operations in Thar require critical infrastructure, which includes a fresh water supply scheme and an effluent disposal line for disposal of groundwater. 24 Thar Coal jab, Khanki Barrage (on Chenab) is being replaced with a brand new structure 900 feet away from the existing barrage which has outlived its structural life and has also turned difficult with an obsolete regulatory mechanism. Not only that but also the Punjab has not fallen ignorant of Baluki Barrage (on Ravi) in spite of the fact it was allocated to India under the Indus River Basin Treaty. Since the floods from the Indian side can wash the barrage out, the Punjab has constructed a new barrage on right side for additional discharge like a bypass constructed on Sindh’s Rohri Canal. The new barrage is 40 miles downstream of Lahore. Then comes Trimoon and Panjnad barrages (on Chenab). The World Bank has consented to fund rehabilitation works on these barrages. The Punjab is about to begin works on these barrages. Now the question is what we (Sindh) have done with our barrages and also what we should do with them. We have three barrages in There are six barrages on river Indus, three each in Sindh and Punjab. Jinnah (near Kala Bag), Chashma (near Mianwali) and Taunsa (near Dera Ghazi Khan) barrages are situated in Punjab while Guddu, Sukkur and Kotri are in Sindh. Of them, Sukkur Barrage, originally named as Lloyd Barrage is the oldest one constructed in 1932, some 82 years back. The Punjab has properly taken care of its barrages. Jinnah Barrage encountered with water intrusion after the construction of Tarbela Dam as siltless water that flew downstream affected the barrage. To address the problem, a new regulator downstream of barrage is being constructed besides addition of new gates and other associated works. Also, Chashma Barrage floor is being strengthened and its gates and accessories are being repaired. Taunsa Barrage is also on active list. The barrage is provided with an additional regulator besides addition of gates and repairs of the affected floor. Of other barrages in Pun- 25 Water resources The state of barrages in Sindh Indris Rajput 26 of the concrete of the arches whose original strength of 3000 PSI was reduced to merely 120 PSI. The examiners have not said anything concrete in this respect. Their replies also stand unsatisfactory if the strength of arches continues leaving their strength. Climatic changes have affected flows in the rivers and they are swelling. Sukkur Barrage can face the might of mighty flows for a while but the strength of its arches cannot be trusted. Thus, it may bring a damage anytime. Should we not learn a lesson from Punjab where new barrages are being constructed one downstream of Khanki Barrage and the other on Baluki Barrage? We should also either build a new barrage or a bypass on Sukkur. Before taking decision, we should examine the options. Kotri Barrage is second to the Sukkur Barrage on Indus River. It can pass flows as high as little less than 0.9 million cusecs. In 1956, Kotri passed 0.981 million cusecs without doing any damage. In 2010, it passed a bit lesser flow than in 1956. It was 0.939 million cusecs. There were issues with Kotri Barrage. One, cut off limitation and, two, rusting of the gates. The issues were addressed through an ODI initiative under which lower floor of the barrage has been repaired and gates replaced. Thus, Kotri Barrage does not need anything now. Guddu Barrage This barrage was to be given three sets of spurs in its upstream. Of them, only one was made due to funds constraints. Thus, the river did damage upstream of the barrage. It also intruded one spur, acted against guide dyke and made an island too due to silt accumulation. The river continues to change its course upstream of Guddu. Also, the gates of the barrage have become obsolete. Furthermore, the size of right pocket is to be increased for a installing regulator for Reni Canal. The increase in pond level has created silt accumulation issues in upper area. Now the barrage may encounter flows as high as 1.2 million cusecs encouraged by climatic changes. The government hired Mott Macdonald for conducting study of the barrage. This British company accomplished its job. The government constituted a committee headed by myself so that the report was reviewed. Later on, the committee was reconstituted with Noor Mohammed Baloch as its head. The committee has a Chief Engineer as its Chairman whereas two of its members are retired secretaries one each from Sindh and Punjab. They may refuse to work due to order of precedence and thus the government opted for reconstituting the committee yet again and it should be formed by senior engineers from Sindh and a member from Punjab. Recommendations: 1) A comprehensive study should be conducted for a new barrage or a bypass at Sukkur 2) The study on Guddu should be reviewed by senior engineers from Sindh and Punjab 3) An appropriate person should be selected to head Project Management Organization (PMO) like the one in Punjab whose counterpart is the most senior engineer of the lot there. The writer is a senior irrigation expert tion of the capacity of the barrage. Two, operational troubles of the canals, in case of shortages. Three, waning strength of arches. Four, repairs of various points at the barrage. In 2012, Sukkur Barrage was examined under World Bank-funded WISP by an English firm Atkins and two Pakistani firms NDC and ACE. In its follow up, the Secretary I&P Sindh formed a committee to look into the report if the study was authentic. Of the four challenges mentioned above, two were conceded by the examiners of the barrage. They include: maintaining pond level at 199.5 and strengthening works at the barrages. The remaining two challenges were not agreed upon. Initially, the experts reached the conclusion that the discharge capacity of the barrage could be enhanced over 1.4 million cusecs if, firstly, the upperside island is removed, secondly, the number of gates be increased from 5 to 9 in the right pocket and, thirdly, 8 gates should be closed instead of 4. When all the statistics were put into practice in Hyderabad Laboratory, it was unearthed that the idea might choke right-side canals due to silt accumulation no matter the capacity was due to be enhanced. The model of the examiners however proved a failure. Then the irrigation officials are making their own experiments according to their experience. It is informed that their experiments are working for now. So far no report has been compiled on such experiments. Thus, there is no claim that all went well. Also, the examiners seem confused about the strength Sindh. Sukkur Barrage irrigates some 7.63 million acres of land while Kotri Barrage has 3 million acres and Guddu 2.17 acres. Sukkur Barrage’s potential is more than the joint effort of Kotri and Guddu barrages. In sum, Sukkur Barrages appears the most significant system in Sindh. Let’s have a look at Sukkur Barrage. In 1941-42, the barrage was encountered with silt problem. As a remedy, the barrage was shut with its ten gates along with accumulation of silt through making an island on the right side. The decision indeed curbed siltation of right side canals but reduced discharge capacity of the barrage which fell down from 1.5 million cusecs to merely 9 million cusecs. It should not be forgotten that Sindh has not faced floods as huge as 1.5 million cusecs at Sukkur Barrage. Speaking out of experience, Sukkur Barrage can pass 1.2 million cusecs as it did in in 1976 floods. In 1949, Sukkur Barrage developed cracks in its piers and arches which were repaired between 1950 and 1956. In 1982, gate 31 collapsed just few months after Sukkur Barrage celebrated its Golden Jubilee. It was an emergency which was accepted appropriately. In a swift move, the broken gate was replaced by an adjoining gate and thus the operation of the canals was kept uninterrupted. In 2004, a ditch was developed in right-side pocket of the barrage. Bahir Dahar, the then Secretary I&P addressed it and thus the pocket was strengthened in 2005. What challenges Sindh face on Sukkur Barrage? Of them, four can be rated as major ones. One, the reducWater resources 27 sion. Scotland will now expect the vows made by unionist parties to give more powers to be delivered,” said Alex Salmond, Scotland first minister and leader of the Yes campaign. The verdict is expected to lead to a more federal United Kingdom, with more powers to Wales, Northern Ireland and England, along the lines of those to be handed over to Scotland. Former prime minister Gordon Brown emerged as the main figure in the ‘No’ campaign with at least three passionate speeches towards the closing stages of the campaign, reviving his flagging political career. Prime Minister David Cameron said he had congratulated Alistair Darling, leader of the Better Together campaign, while Nicola Sturgeon, one of the top Yes campaign leaders, expressed her ‘deep personal and political disappointment’. — ICMD Scotland has decisively rejected independence by winning more than half of the votes polled, concluding an intensely-fought campaign that threatened to tear asunder the 307-year -old United Kingdom. With 31 out of the country’s 32 council areas having declared results, the margin of victory was about 55% to 45%. Glasgow, Scotland’s largest council area and the third largest city in Britain, voted in favour of independence, while capital Edinburgh, rejected it. As many people across the country heaved a collective sigh of relief, the implications of the rejection were beginning to come to the fore: Westminster will have to deliver the promises of more powers to Scotland in the near future, made during the closing stages of the campaign. “I accept the verdict of the people. We now face the consequences of the deciWorld Better together with UK: Scotland vote against independence 28 groups might try to flare up tension in communallysensitive areas of UP,” said the state’s additional director general for law and order, Mukul Goela. The state’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) is already probing a video released by Indian Mujahideen operatives urging Muslim youth to join Ansar alTawhid, a militant group based in Afghanistan. Ansar al Tawhid recruits and trains people for al Qaeda in the camps on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, said a police officer. In Assam, security officials were keeping tabs on groups such as the United Muslim National Army, which is seeking a separate administrative area for Muslims in Assam. Muslims form 32% of the population in Assam, which has a history of sectarian violence, mostly between ethnic Bodo people and Muslim settlers from bordering Bangladesh. Concerns over the video were high in strife-torn, Muslim-majority Kashmir, which has been a fertile recruiting ground for global jihadi groups. A top counter-insurgency officer, who did not want to be identified, told HT several youth are joining radical militant outfits which believe in suicide bombings, unlike the indigenous Hizbul Mujahideen that is against suicide bombings at public places. Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, AG Mir dismissed reports of recruitment of Kashmiri youth by ISIL or al Qaeda but statements by Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin reflect a new thinking among militant groups. “If al-Qaeda, Taliban or any other organisation or country extends a helping hand to the oppressed Kashmiris, we will welcome it,” Salahuddin said in July. But hardline Hurriyat chief Syed Ali Geelani dismissed fears of al Qaeda finding a base in Kashmir. “There is no scope of al Qaeda and Taliban here. Ours is a local and indigenous struggle,” said Geelani. — ICMD Qaeda video, we will be on a higher alert. We will work closely with the central government to tackle any threat posed to the state,” S.K. Nanda, the chief secretary of Gujarat. A high security alert in the state involves activating informer networks in sensitive areas. Authorities in Uttar Pradesh also said they were on alert for attacks by local Islamist militants and were worried the video would inflame tensions, especially in the western parts where tensions have been high since last year’s deadly riots in Muzzafarnagar. “We are studying the video and security agencies have been directed to remain vigilant as the fanatic The communally-sensitive states of Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, Assam and Uttar Pradesh are put on increased alert after al Qaeda announced the formation of a wing in India and its neighbourhood. In a 55-minute video posted online, al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahri said the new branch of his militant group will spread Islamic rule and “raise the flag of jihad” across the subcontinent, including Assam, Gujarat and Kashmir. Gujarat stepped up its vigil after the video which could fan communal hostilities in the state where more than 1,000 people, mainly Muslims, died in a spasm of violence in 2002. “In the wake of this al World 29 setting up a tricky balance of power as Afghanistan enters a new era. None of the candidates spoke at the palace ceremony, and it remained uncertain when they would address the nation or when the unity agreement would be officially published. “The Independent Election Commission declares Dr Ashraf Ghani as the president, and thus announces the end of election process,” commission chief Ahmad Yousaf Nuristani later told reporters. “During the election process fraud was committed from all sides. That has concerned people.” In a move likely to trigger complaints over transparency, Nuristani gave no figures for the winning margin, turnout or the number of fraudulent ballot papers thrown out in an UN-supervised audit that checked every individual vote. Ghani was widely acknowledged to be on the brink of the presidency after coming well ahead in preliminary results released before the audit began. Under the constitution, the president wields almost total control, and the new government structure will face a major test as the security and economic outlook worsens. “Hamid Karzai wishes the elected president Dr Ashraf Ghani and the CEO Dr Abdullah Abdullah success based on the agreement between them,” said a statement from the outgoing president. – Agencies/ICMD Former finance minister Ashraf Ghani was declared Afghanistan’s next president on Sunday, hours after signing a power-sharing deal with his rival Abdullah Abdullah that ended a prolonged standoff over the disputed result. Allegations of massive fraud in the June 14 vote sparked a political crisis as both candidates claimed victory, paralysing the country at a key moment with US-led troops winding down their 13-year war against the Taliban. When the long-awaited “unity government” deal was finally signed, Ghani embraced Abdullah briefly at a low-key ceremony in the presidential palace that lasted less than 10 minutes. Abdullah will become “chief executive officer” (CEO), a role similar to prime minister – World Power deal in Kabul 30 Lincoln Corner in Quetta U.S. Consul General Brian Heath and University of Balochistan, Vice Chancellor Dr. Javeid Iqbal signed an agreement to open a Lincoln Corner in Quetta in early 2015. This first Lincoln Corner in Balochistan Province will be located at the University of Balochistan’s Law College. “It has been a long, hard road to get here today,” said Mr. Heath. “We are honored to be working with Dr. Javeid Iqbal, Vice Chancellor, University of Balochistan; and Barrister Amanullah Achakazai, Principal, Law College, University of Balochistan. “The Lincoln Center Quetta will open doors for Pakistanis who want to learn more about America, explore study and exchange opportunities, and engage with Americans and alumni, said Mr. Heath. Lincoln Corners, more than 700 worldwide and 19 in Pakistan are a worldwide network of publicly accessible places that enable U.S. Embassies and Consulates to build and strengthen relations with host countries, showcase American culture and values, promote English language learning, encourage study in the United States, and foster goodwill and understanding. 14th to 18th century. The U.S. is providing more than $260,000 to restore the ancient tombs of Sultan Ibrahim and Amir Sultan Muhammad. The U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) supports preservation of cultural sites, cultural objects, and forms of traditional cultural expression in more than 100 countries around the world. include restoration of ancient and historic buildings, conservation of rare manuscripts and museum collections, preservation and protection of important archaeological sites, and documentation of vanishing traditional craft techniques and indigenous languages. U.S. Ambassador Richard G. Olson visited the Makli Hill necropolis to announce the inaugural Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) project in Sindh province. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) named Makli Hill a World Heritage site in 1981. “The Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation is a centerpiece of America’s partnership with Pakistan in the area of art and culture,” said Ambassador Olson. “We are honored to work with Ms. Yasmeen Lari of the Heritage Foundation of Pakistan, and to have the support from Ms. Sharmila Farooqi, the Minister of Culture and Tourism for Sindh province, to restore the 400 year-old tombs of Sultan Ibrahim and Amir Sultan Muhammad at Makli Hill. According to Ambassador Olson, the U.S. Embassy has worked with partners in federal and provincial governments on 17 projects throughout Pakistan. This is the first project in Sindh. “Our investments in these cultural preservation projects demonstrate our respect for the rich heritage and diversity of Pakistan,” he said. Makli Hill is among the largest cemeteries in the world. The site includes the tombs of kings, queens, governors, saints, scholars, and philosophers from the Ambassador Olson Announces Makli Hill Cultural Preservation Project US initiatives 31 DiCaprio and his ‘Shutter Island’ co-star Ruffalo, reported New York Daily News. The event is being billed as the biggest march for climate action in history. DiCaprio, who was made a United Nations Messenger of Peace on Climate Change this week, and ‘Lost’ star Lilly will join an expected crowd of more Stars including Leonardo DiCaprio, Evangeline Lilly, and Mark Ruffalo are set to join protesters at a special march in New York City to demand more action over climate change. Organisers of the People’s Climate March in Manhattan said they are expecting several Hollywood stars to attend, including the lower half. Her brown locks were swept into a centre-parting and she kept her make-up understated and natural. Completing the look she added a metallic belt and conservative black pumps. She later changed into a sleeveless black silky midilength dress for a party in honour of the occasion. Paris-born beauty Emma who in May graduated from America’s prestigious Brown University with a degree in English literature, held the attention of an esteemed audience. than 100,000 for the march. Emma Watson UN’s Goodwill Ambassador For Women She was seen in Uruguay earlier this week speaking at the UN Womens HeForShe campaign presentation. And days later, Emma Watson jetted in to New York to continue her work as the UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and turned heads in a formal yet stunning ensemble. The 24-year-old actress is currently making her mark as an advocate for ending inequalities for women around the world. She wore an elegant oatmeal dress with blazer structuring on top and pleated skirt on Leadership roles Leonardo DiCaprio, Emma turn UN campaigners 32 Cricket tion. Ajmal’s action was declared suspect by field umpires Ian Gould and Bruce Oxenford during the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle on Aug 11 over a number of deliveries that were considered to be suspect. The 36-year-old spinner travelled to Australia where he had tests conducted on his action. Ajmal, who has taken 183 wickets in 111 ODIs and 178 wickets in 35 Tests, was one of five bowlers that were reported for having suspect actions since a worldwide crackdown began in June. Ajmal’s mystery ball and the Pakistan to go in the world cup without special spinner The International Cricket Council (ICC) has declared Pakistan spin maestro Saeed Ajmal’s bowling action as illegal. Now, he will not be able to bowl at the international level. The ICC said an independent analysis found the bowling action of Pakistan’s offspinner to be illegal and, as such, the player had been suspended from bowling in international cricket. “The analysis revealed that all his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the regulations”, said ICC communicaagainst Australia in Dubai but cleared all the tests. Ajmal has often troubled batsman with his special deliveries. But it was the same delivery that ran him into trouble in 2009 before he was cleared by University of Western Australia. In May England’s fast bowler Stuart Broad had also questioned Ajmal’s bowling action and said that the off-spinner used different bowling actions on the field and during testing. Senior Pakistani cricketers say it is a major setback for Pakistan that lacks quality spin options now. Pakistan has to go in the World Cup without Ajmal. – Agencies/ICMD one under most scrutiny was his doosra, the away spinner delivered by an arm which often needs to straighten to get maximum whip. The current law allowed bowlers to flex their elbow at an angle of 15 degrees. This has been the case for a decade, with the law introduced due to bowlers such as Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralidaran who was proved to have a medical condition which meant he had a permanently bent elbow. It was not for the first time that Ajmal had been reported in international matches. He was previously reported in 2009 during a one-day series 33 Learning  The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any. – Alice Walker  The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. –Chinese Proverb  Eighty percent of success is showing up. – Woody Allen  Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. –Steve Jobs  You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore. – Christopher Columbus  You breathe on average about 5 million times a year.  You are born with 300 bones, by the time you are an adult you will have 206.  One fourth of the bones in your body are in your feet.  Human thigh bones are stronger than concrete.  It is impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. We dare you, give it a try!  If removed from the stress of the modern 1. mores n. – A places for boats to anchor. B customs. C campfire treats. D type of eel 2. snarf v. – A to wrap around, as with a scarf. B eat sparingly.C eats greedily. D sneeze while holding one’s nose. 3. hinky adj. – A high-strung. B very wealthy. C pretentious. D suspicious. 4. jiggy adj. – A weak-kneed. B devious. C pleasurably excited. D very rainy. 5. haimish adj. – A folksy. B learned. C harmful. D very disrespectful. 6. scrunchy n. – A open-toed-sandal. B folding chair. C skirt-shorts combo. D hair holder 7. trog n. – A hooligan. B tree frog. C ancient beverage. D 1960s dance. 8. bilby n. – A stem of a plant. B mesh visor. C brimmed hat made of felt. D small marsupial. 9. delish adj. – A filled with fluid. B delicate. C delicious. D delirious. 10. cred n. – A credenza. B credit. C credulity D credibility Let’s see how smart you are 1. mores – B A particular group’s customs; 2. snarf – C To eat or drink greedily 3. hinky – D Suspiciousky. 4. jiggy – C Pleasurably excited 5. haimish – A Folksy, unpretentious 6. scrunchy – D Elastic band for fastening hair 7. trog – A Hooligan 8. bilby – D Small nocturnal marsupial; 9. cred – D Credibility Answers to Word Power Trivia: Quotes to remember Word Trivia 34 Online security users could be open to attack,” it said quoting Google’s stats; though not all are likely to be using the affected browser, the report said. The flaw can allow a bypass of the Same Origin Policy (SOP) protection, which is implemented in most browsers, such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome, Baloch said. The SOP “stops malicious code from spilling over from one site to others open on separate tabs,” the Forbes report said. “It was a really nasty bug. The mere fact that it potentially gives access to private data is a huge problem, after all it’s that data can then be used to commit further crimes against you,” it quoted Professor Alan Woodward, a security expert from the University of Surrey’s computing department, as saying. This is not the first time Baloch has reported a major security flaw in a global technology company’s software. He has been participating in various bug bounty programmes to help several major internet corporations improve their internet security. For example, he was rewarded with $10,000 in cash and a job offer from PayPal for finding remote code execution vulnerability along with several other high-risk vulnerabilities inside the online money transfer service. While Baloch’s research led to the fixing of the AOSP Browser bug, the internet giant disqualified him for any reward or credit for his contribution. “Android does not currently have a vulnerability rewards programme. Android is covered in the Patch Rewards Programme though,” Josh Armour from Android Security told Baloch, according to the email correspondence between the two. “Given that this [the bug] was published before we had a chance to provide patches, this specific report would not qualify,” Armour wrote to Baloch. Disappointed with Google’s response, the researcher said he disclosed the bug more than two weeks prior to publishing the same so it was “Google’s fault for not being able to reproduce it.” “It was a serious security threat and should have been fixed immediately,” he said. “Yes, I can fix this quickly,” the white hat hacker said in response to a question. – Courtesy ET email correspondence with the Android security team. It was only after August 31, when the young techie released this information on his blog that Android was able to reproduce the bug and released patches for the AOSP Browser. The issue, however, was already picked up by the world’s major technology blogs and publications before the company could fix it. “Right at the start of September, security researcher Rafay Baloch released details on an Android bug that has now been called a ‘privacy disaster’,” http://www.forbes.com s aid in a September 16 report. The report added that anyone not running the latest release, Android 4.4, is affected. “That means as many as 75% of Android devices and millions of A Pakistani security researcher has helped Google fix a major security flaw in its Android operating system for smartphones, protecting the personal data of millions of smartphone users across the world. Professional penetration tester and author of the book ‘Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Guide’, Rafay Baloch identified a major vulnerability in the Android Open Source Platform (AOSP) Browser and reported it to Google on August 13. The 21-year-old also shared a proof of concept (PoC) for the security bug – which he defined as a Same Origin Policy (SOP) bypass – with the company but the California-based internet giant could not reproduce it for over two weeks, according to his How Rafay Baloch helped Google avoid privacy disaster 35 Trends According to Gallup Pakistan, 66 percent of Pakistanis think that Imran Khan should have waited for the next elections. It also revealed a strong commitment to democracy with 81 percent saying they prefer it to the 13 percent who favoured dictatorship. Furthermore, all other political parties have renewed their confidence in PM Nawaz Sharif and both Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate have passed unanimous resolutions declaring it illegal to ask for his resignation or dissolution of parliament. Coercing his resignation would hence be an unconstitutional assault on parliament’s resolutions. As many have pointed out, if Imran Khan thinks PM Nawaz Sharif rigged the 2013 elections on a massive scale while not even being in office, it does not make sense that he needs to resign before any investigation takes place. 66 percent Pakistanis think Imran Khan should have waited Should US give statements on Pakistan’s internal crisis? According to a Gilani Research Foundation Survey carried out by Gallup Pakistan, 65% Pakistanis believe that the American government should not be giving statements about Pakistan’s internal problems; 16% disagree. A nationally representative sample of adult men and women, from across the four provinces was asked, “Recently, with regards to the political situation in the country America has given a statement in favor of the current Pakistan government. In your personal opinion, should America give any statements about Pakistan’s internal problems or not?” Responding to this question, 65% respondents said that America should not be giving statements about Pakistan’s internal problems, 16% respondents said that America should give statements about Pakistan’s problems and 19% did not respond. films like ‘Haidar’ and ‘Bang Bang’, which are also to be released on the busy season of Eid. Unlike its title, which has become a terminology in Pakistan, ‘Na Maloom Afraad’, is not a documentary, based on a social issue; the story is a pure comedy/thriller that revolves around the life of three reckless and struggling men chasing down their ambitions and saving their lives, they are brought Pakistani comedy/thriller film ‘Na Maloom Afraad’ is set to released on Eidul Azha. With the much-hyped item song “Billi”, featured on Pakistani actress/model Mehwish Hayat, the soundtrack released also on the same day. ‘Na Maloom Afraad’ music album includes nine songs composed by Shani Kami, Vicky Haider and Naqash Haider. The film is claimed to pitch big Bollywood together by one incident, which makes their not so simple life turn into a troller coaster ride of numerous ironic twists and turns. Young filmmaker and director Nabeel Qureshi, says, “The movie was created keeping in the view to support Pakistani cinema, like Bilal Lashari’s ‘Waar’, which did a Rs 20 crorebusiness. This year ‘Na Maloom Afraad’ is expected to be a big hit in Pakistan.” He said that no cinema was bound to Pakistani or Indian films if Pakistani cinema could produce quality films they must get there place on the local cinema screens as it was evident with the earlier Pakistani hits. He added that ‘Na Maloom Afraad’ was made with pure Pakistani contents by all its aspects including the script, music, cast and the choreography. Qureshi added that although the film was not a patriotic or a society-based documentary but it had full colours and expressions of daily life in Pakistan especially of Karachi. The producer of the film Fizza Ali Meerza, who is also the winner of Tarang Film Award for Best Art Director, said, “Everyone from the film industry in Pakistan should team up to bring Pakistani films on top listing in local cinema, which are currently occupied by Indian films and give the Pakistani audience an essence of Pakistan in films.” Legendary actor, director and producer Javed Sheikh who plays the role of Shakeel in the film lauded the efforts of Meerza and Qureshi. “The movie will bring what is expected today from the Pakistani cinema,” Sheikh said. — ICMD Na Maloom Afraad arriving on Eid Entertainment 36 Award’ classification at the 87th Academy Awards. The Pakistani Academy Selection Committee (PASC) chose it by method for a mystery ticket. In 2013, the PASC chose ‘Zinda Bhaag’ as the first ‘Dukhtar’ a recent Pakistani thriller which is the centre of attraction and drawing huge audiences across the country, has been chosen to be submitted for Oscar attention in the ‘Remote Language Film Pakistani film in excess of 50 years to be submitted for Oscar attention in the ‘Outside Language Film Award’ class. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will pick the last candidates for all honor classifications including Best Foreign Language Film by January 8, 2015. The complete and last rundown of Oscar chosen people will be reported on January 15, 2015 with the presentation show for the 87th Academy Awards planned to occur on February 22, 2015. A record number of 76 movies were submitted for Oscar attention in the Best Foreign Language Film classification at the 86th Academy Awards held not long ago. The quantity of globally submitted movies for this class is required to be significantly more noteworthy not long from now. ‘Dukhtar’, guided by Afia Nathaniel, highlights the issue of kid marriage through the setup of a street excursion thriller that investigates the extreme dramatization of a mother’s excited quest for another life for her girl with the assistance of exMujahid truck driver played by recompense winning performing artist Mohib Mirza. The film is situated against the background of the surreal scenes and streets of Hunza, Skardu, Gilgit and Kallar Kahar the distance to the urbanscape of Lahore. — ICMD Dukhtar chosen for Oscar submission Entertainment 37 Copy Care System Ensuring your corporate office machines never stop Our maintenance division takes care of Ricoh photocopiers, printers, fax machines & computers